Hormuz Strait; Iran's strategic leverage in the U.S. recalculation, Obama's statements on Iran's "veto right" over the Hormuz Strait again emphasized the strategic importance of this waterway; the ability that the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution previously mentioned as one of Iran's pressure levers against the U.S. and Israel. The revolution's leader previously spoke about the necessity of using the Hormuz Strait's capability as a pressure lever; now Obama speaks about increasing Iran's power to influence this waterway and its implications for the global energy market. The difference between these two positions is the speakers' stance and the purpose of their words, but both point to the strategic importance of the Hormuz Strait in the equation of confrontation between Iran and the U.S. To understand the dimensions of this importance, it is enough to note the amount of energy passing through this route. According to International Energy Agency data, in 2025 an average of 20 million barrels of crude oil and petroleum products will pass through the Hormuz Strait per day; this figure equals one-fifth of global oil consumption and nearly a quarter of maritime oil trade.

Hormuz Strait; Iran's strategic leverage in the U.S. recalculation, Obama's statements on Iran's "veto right" over the Hormuz Strait again emphasized the strategic importance of this waterway; the ability that the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution previously mentioned as one of Iran's pressure levers against the U.S. and Israel. The revolution's leader previously spoke about the necessity of using the Hormuz Strait's capability as a pressure lever; now Obama speaks about increasing Iran's power to influence this waterway and its implications for the global energy market. The difference between these two positions is the speakers' stance and the purpose of their words, but both point to the strategic importance of the Hormuz Strait in the equation of confrontation between Iran and the U.S. To understand the dimensions of this importance, it is enough to note the amount of energy passing through this route. According to International Energy Agency data, in 2025 an average of 20 million barrels of crude oil and petroleum products will pass through the Hormuz Strait per day; this figure equals one-fifth of global oil consumption and nearly a quarter of maritime oil trade.